Starting the game on the night Victor's experiment succeeds is a great way to spark tension between the character's original choices and what the player wants to do. Since free text input unlocks on the fourth choice and you only get two per story, is it a resource you can use anytime? I wonder if players will end up hoarding them because they're afraid of running out haha.
Hey, thanks for the feedback! Glad you enjoyed the game!
About custom actions: once they unlock, you can use them at any point in the story. Nothing forces you to spend them early or save for later
One more tip: open the in-game menu. From there you can also use items in your inventory and interact with the characters you’ve met! It’s another way to steer the story beyond the offered choices.
We spent a long time on this balance. Some games give you only pre-written choices, and others make you type every action yourself. We wanted something in between: you can always go off-script with free input, but you don’t have to keep making up and writing every move, which can leave you staring at a blank.
Thanks for explaining! Just to clarify, I haven't actually played it yet—my last comment was just based on your post's description. Mixing preset actions with free input, plus using items and characters you've already met as conversation starters, definitely takes the pressure off not knowing what to type. Our team is also testing ISECAI, a free-input AI anime academy RPG. Would you be down to try a quick, free web opening to see how the suggested replies flow with typing your own inputs? If you're interested, I'll post the link and a personal invite code right here.